Residence permit in France

France is very popular among tourists from all over the world. Paris, Nice, Toulouse and many other cities of this country attract both connoisseurs of architecture, as well as the most sophisticated gourmets and simply inquisitive people. But many residents of different countries come here for completely different purposes. First of all, they want to obtain a residence permit in France, which opens up excellent opportunities for obtaining a quality education, a good job, or a successful business. True, such a stir also gives rise to certain difficulties with obtaining a French residence permit, since the local government is not interested in an uncontrolled flow of immigrants. How this desire can be realized, we will consider in this publication.

Why do you need a residence permit in France?

Before delving into the details, it is necessary to initially understand why this is worth doing. Therefore, we suggest that you familiarize yourself with the main advantages of obtaining a French residence permit:

• Free higher education;
• Transparency of the legal system for business;
• Salaries of the European level and many options for employment;
• Opportunities for movement in the Schengen area;
• Quality medicine and high social standards of life;
• Access to the European lending system;
• Life in a country where natural beauties are in harmony with the unsurpassed creations of the human hand. As you can see, there are many advantages from immigrating to this country, but there are also many difficulties along the way.

Therefore, we will proceed directly to the consideration of legal ways of moving.

How to get a residence permit in France?

Fortunately, this democratic state provides a considerable number of legal options for immigration. First of all, success may be due to the purpose of coming to French soil, as well as the availability of the necessary funds for living.

For residents of post-Soviet countries that are not part of the European Union, there are stricter rules for obtaining a residence permit in France. So, for starters, Ukrainians or Russians, namely they most often go there, should get a long-term type of visa (visa long séjour), which allows you to stay on French soil from three months to a year. It is issued by the French Consulate. The basis for this may be:

• Education or training;
• Research activities;
• Temporary (from 3 months to a year) or long-term (more than a year) work;
• Marriage to a French citizen or family reunification;
• Long stay in France without the right to work.

If a native of the CIS has already been living in the EU for more than five years, then there will be no need to obtain such a visa.

The immigration procedure itself is as follows. When arriving in France, you should definitely confirm your arrival at the local office of the Office of Immigration and Integration (OFII). The consular fee will cost 99 €. You should bring your passport, medical insurance, a portrait photo (in color) and documentation confirming the availability of an apartment in their country with you. Housing does not have to be yours, it is enough to have the right to rent (on average, a rented apartment in France will cost from 500 € per month and more, excluding utility bills).

After passing a medical examination and answering a number of explanatory questions, you will be given a mark in your passport that ensures the legality of your stay in France for a period of not more than one year. After passing through this procedure, you can proceed to the direct registration of a residence permit.

What documents are needed to apply for a residence permit in France?

Contacting the prefecture, you can find out the list of required documents. You will have to provide not only their originals, but also two copies translated into the local language. The default set looks like this:

• Application of a given form;
• International passport;
• Valid French visa;
• Color passport photos (3 pcs.);
• Documentation confirming the existence of an apartment in France (rent or owner's rights);
• Certificate of marital status;
• Medical insurance;
• Certificate of income or bank account status (at least 1480 € for each month of stay in France);
• Two envelopes with the address of residence;
• Postage stamp worth 241 € or 58 € (in the case of a student visa).

It is also important to decide what kind of residence permit in France you are interested in, because there are a number of their varieties:

• Carte de Séjour "Compétences et talents" - residence permit "Skills and talents", which is issued for up to 3 years with the possibility of extension;
• Carte de Séjour Temporaire - temporary residence permit for up to a year, but with the right to extend;
• Carte de Résident - a permanent residence permit, which is issued for 10 years and can be extended further;
• Carte de Séjour "Retraité" - a residence permit for pensioners, also for up to 10 years and the possibility of renewal.

Having chosen the appropriate option and collected all the necessary documents, you should carefully study the ways to obtain the desired document.

Buying property to obtain a residence permit in France

The grounds for issuing a residence permit were listed earlier when we described a long-term visa and, in general, they are quite clear. So, we propose to focus on the question of how to get a residence permit in France through the purchase of real estate. In order for the purchased square meters to play a significant role in the processing of documents at the migration service, it is necessary that the area of housing exceeds 16 sq. meters for a family of two and, increased by 9 sq. meters for each additional household.

The approximate cost of one square meter of real estate in large cities, such as Paris, ranges from 7 thousand €. up to 11 thousand €. For comparison, luxury real estate in France will cost from 12 thousand €. up to 30 thousand €. per square meter. Buying suburban real estate is more profitable. Thus, the average price of a country house in France does not exceed 100 thousand €, ranging from 63 thousand €. (in Creuse) up to 99.1 thousand €. (in the Ardennes).

Importantly, in this country they are very loyal to foreigners and even offer very favorable mortgage conditions, the main thing is that the applicant's credit history is in perfect order. The loan amount is up to 65-70% of the property value, and the term of its issuance is up to 20 years, with an average interest rate of 2%. So, even despite the high cost of the local apartments, the possibilities for acquiring them are quite acceptable. And, along with this, and for obtaining a residence permit.